MISTY MEMORIES

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Chapter Twenty-Six
Festival Fugitives
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❝My body will remember that anger that will not leave me until I die.❞

EVERYTHING WAS going nice until Mei couldn't control the vehicle anymore. You didn't know what happened exactly, but you managed to jump out before you could get involved into the crash.

Mei hit Sandy's new van, destroying it while her jet remained in a good state. After a few minutes, you joined them, seeing Sandy cry while Mk standing there, "Mk." You called out as you approached him. The boy turned around and smiled upon seeing you walking toward him, "Y/N! It's good to see you!" He exclaimed with happiness,  hugging you tightly. A small smile tugged on your lips and you wrapped your arms around him, "I'm happy to see you too." You replied before you looked up at the sky.

"Mk, why are those cracks back?" You asked him after pulling away, pointing up at the sky.

"It's a long story." Mk stated while scratching the back of his head, laughing nervously, "To make it short, we need to collect five colored stones to repair the Pillar of Heaven and fix everything." He explained shortly and showed you two stones, one was red and the other in blue.

A hum left your lips as you looked at them, "Is it really going to work?" You asked again, shifting your gaze to meet his eyes. He nodded his head to confirm his theory and that made you shrug your shoulders, "If that's the case, then I'm going to help you." You declared with determination. Mk was unable to thank you enough for always being by his side, he sure could use any possible help.

-TIME SKIP-

The group finally regathered again in the White Tiger and Azure Dragon Festival to look for the next stone. The festival looked pretty nice to walk around, but it was somehow swarming with fully armored celestial guards. You all hid in the bushes so the guards won't spot you.

You turned to Mk with an unreadable look on your face, "Mk, why are there celestial guards here?" You asked him, your voice derived from any emotions. Mk chuckled nervously while averting his gaze away, "Well, they might be after us because me, Monkey King and Macaque had escaped from prison." He told you with a hint of anxiety on his face.

"Prison? You three escaped the prison?" You asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It's another long story, but don't worry! Look! We haven't even started searching and we already have two of the colored stones. I have a good feeling about this!" Mk added as he tried to assure everyone.

"Quit speaking nonsense!" Pigsy yelled at him.

"Ok ok. But really I think there won't be any problems this time. Only you can choose your on path and live in the present." Mk stated before looking at both Wukong and Sandy. You probably missed something, but you didn't mind at all.

Actually, you got fed up with their conversation, so you decided to walk around. Since you weren't involved a lot in the matter of Azure Lion and the whole Pillar of Heaven thingy, you were able to move around freely. Plus, you had a pretty good relationship with the celestial guards since you were the most trusted companion to the monk Tang Sanzang. Thus, you left them to check if you can find any clues about the stone.

You strolled around casually, looking at the many souvenirs and food stands. Just then...

"Y/N, what are you doing here?"

You stopped when you heard someone talking to you. Turning around, you were met face to face with none other than Ne Zha himself. Of course, he still had no idea that you had regained your memories, so you decided to pretend to not remember him, "Hm? Who are you again?" You asked with a monotonous voice, tilting your head to the side. Ne Zha sighed and approached you, "I figured you won't remember, but it doesn't matter. More importantly, have you seen Monkey King and Mk?" He asked you.

You blinked a few times and shook your head, "No... I was passing by and just wanted to take a look." You stated, keeping a blank gaze. Suddenly, Ne Zha looked behind you while squinting his eyes. You got curious and turned around, seeing Tang on a stage with Jin and Yin acting as DJs.

"Oh my great sage! Guys!" Tang yelled loudly, pointing at Ne Zha and the guards with him. As the others turned around, the Lotus Prince frowned in frustration, "No!" He exclaimed before chasing after your friends. Before the guards could follow him, you pulled out your sword to defeat them, "Mist Breathing: Sixth Form: Lunar Dispersing Mist." You leaped into the air and performed a multitude of slashes in a somersaulting motion, decimating all of your targets at once.

You didn't waste time and jumped on the stalls to join your friends, noticing Ne Zha summoning a big mech. You eventually found them standing by a dead end. You landed down and joined them, "Guys, we have to escape. Ne Zha will be here soon." You told them, keeping a tight grip on your sword in case Ne Zha would appear out of nowhere.

"What? It's just Ne Zha."

"What about Ne Zha's wind and fire mech?" Mei mentioned with slight panic.

"Wha-" Mk couldn't finish his question when Mei grabbed him by the collar.

"Ne Zha has a wind and fire mech!"

She pointed toward the mech that was approaching with an incredible speed. Wukong smirked and dashed forward to stop Ne Zha, but Mk stopped him and stood right before Ne Zha's spear, "NeZha, we shouldn't fight each other! We don't need to be like this!" He spoke up, hoping to convince the Lotus Prince.

"I know! My father's struggling to maintain everything in the world. He's right! You're all chaos!"

"We already have two of the stones! Everything's going to be fixed!"

"As far as I know these stones will only cause trouble! You're not following the rules and just doing whatever you want! My... My father..."

"Your father is wrong. Please... Trust us."

Ne Zha stared at Mk for a moment before deactivating his mech. Mk looked around, giving you all an assuring smile. Wukong smirked with pride, "Well said." Just then, the circlet around his head tightened and he screamed in pain. You looked up and saw Ne Zha's dad with the Pagoda in his hand. Ne Zha tried to speak to his father, but he was silenced, "Since you escaped, the world is becoming more and more chaotic!" His eyes then shifted to you, "It's disappointing to see the monk's most trusted guard to be alongside a bunch of chaotic mortals. Now, don't even think about escaping!" He finished before opening the Pagoda's gate to suck you in.

All of you struggled against the powerful force that was pulling you toward Pagoda, but it was too strong. Thankfully, Ne Zha stepped in and protected you and your friend by his spear. Mk quickly turned to Tang, "Mr. Tang!" The man quickly understood and brought out his staff before tapping it on the ground.

A big golden bubble like thing engulfed you and your friends, taking you away from this place. You all were safe, but only for now.